
Class 

Book 

Copyright^ .. 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



The Second Coming 
of Christ 



By 

Rev. H, C. Morrison, D. D 



Author of 

"The Baptism with the Holy Ghost/' "From the 
Pulpit to Perdition," "World Tonr of Evangel- 
ism," "Life Sketches and Sermons," "Thoughts 
For the Thoughtful," "The Confessions 
of a Backslider," "The Two Law- 
yers," "Open Letters to the 
Church," etc. 



PUBLISHED BY 

THE PENTECOSTAL PUBLISHING COMPANY, 

LOUISVILLE. KY. 






COPYRIGHTED BY 

PENTECOSTAL PUBLISHING COMPANY, 

1974. 



MM 21 I9i4 

©CI.A36 9423 



CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Introduction 5 

Preface 7 

CHAPTER I. 
The Budding Fig Tree 9 

CHAPTER II. 
The Apostasy 17 

CHAPTER III. 
The Gospel Not a Failure 29 

CHAPTER IV. 
Perilous Times 39 

CHAPTER V. 
Return of The Jews 49 

CHAPTER VI. 
The Return of the Jews (continued) . 61 

CHAPTER VII. 
The Spread of The Gospel 71 

CHAPTER VIII. 
A Thousand Years For A Day 87 

CHAPTER IX. 
Memorials and Promises 99 

CHAPTER X. 
The Second John the Baptist 1 05 

CHAPTER XI. 
The Millennium 109 



This little volume is dedicated to 

"The Holiness People," 
and all other Christian people who 
trust alone in Jesus Christ for sal- 
vation from all sin. 



PREFACE. 

In writing this book it has been the least 
of our thought to undertake anything like a 
full discussion of the subject under consid- 
eration. The book is written to awaken in- 
terest in the precious doctrine it holds forth 
and suggest a further study of the subject as 
contained in the Scriptures and in many ex- 
cellent and more exhaustive publications on 
the same theme. 

There are many phases of the subject 
we have not discussed at all. The book, 
as we send it forth, is the outgrowth and en- 
largement of a sermon we have preached 
on many occasions under which we have 
seen profound conviction, numbers of sin- 
ners converted, believers sanctified, and the 
Lord's people greatly edified and blessed. 
We send it forth earnestly praying that 
God may make it a blessing to those who 
read its pages. 

Faithfully yours in service and watching, 
H. C. Morrison. 



"Watch therefore, for ye know neither 
the day nor the hour wherein the Son of 
man cometh." — Jesus, Matt. 25:13. 



Chapter I. 
THE BUDDING FIG TREE. 

If Jesus Christ had have come into the 
world the first time as He will come the 
second time, the world would have been 
utterly unprepared to receive Him. When 
God appeared in clouds of smoke on Mt. 
Sinai, the people "did exceedingly fear and 
quake." When Jesus appears in the 
clouds, coming the second time in His glo- 
ry, those who have rejected Him and are 
without the white robes of His righteous- 
ness, will call for rocks and mountains to 
fall upon them and hide them from the 
"face of Him that sitteth upon the throne." 

In the redemption of the race and resto- 
ration of all things, it was necessary that 
our Lord should come twice into the 
world. First, to die for its redemption and 
inaugurate the gospel plan of salvation. 
Second, to set up His kingdom on earth 



1 The Second Coming of Christ. 

and reign in triumph and blessedness over 
His redeemed people. 

All through His ministry Christ called 
attention to the fact that He would come 
again into the world. His parables, ser- 
mons and sayings abound in gracious 
promises of His coming and in exhortations 
to His followers to be prepared for that 
glorious event. On the last solemn evening 
He spent with His disciples before His 
crucifixion, He comforted their sad hearts 
with the following gracious promise: "I 
go to prepare a place for you. And if I 
go and prepare a place for you, I will 
come again, and receive you unto myself; 
that where I am, there ye may be also." 
St. John 14:2,3. 

His many references to His second com- 
ing awakened in His disciples a profound 
interest and a keen desire to know the time 
when He would return. The date of His 
coming He never gave them, but on the 
other hand assured them that the time was 



The Second Coming of Christ 1 1 

the secret of the Father and that, not know- 
ing the hour, it behooved them to be always 
ready. He did, however, give them cer- 
tain signs that would indicate to them the 
nearness of His appearing. 

In Matt. 24:32, 33, He says: "Now 
learn a parable of the fig tree; when his 
branch is yet tender, and putteth forth 
leaves, ye know that the summer is nigh: 
So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these 
things, know that it is near, even at the 
doors." From this scripture we learn that 
while the day of the coming of the Lord is 
not given, there are certain events that must 
take place, and certain conditions that will 
exist just prior to the conclusion of the gos- 
pel dispensation,, and these signs are 
as positive evidence that the com- 
ing of Christ draweth nigh, as the 
bursting of the buds of springtime are 
indicative of the approach of summer. The 
blind man cannot see the buds swelling on 
the bough under the warm influence of the 



1 2 The Second Coming of Christ 

sunshine and shower, nevertheless, the buds 
are easily discerned by those who have 
eyes to see. 

It is not to be supposed that men who 
do not believe in Christ, do not love Him, 
and do not desire Him, would be able to 
discern the signs of His coming. There 
are those who do believe in Him, but whose 
eyes are blinded by ecclesiastical ambition, 
prejudice or false teaching so that they are 
unable to discern die signs of the times. 
These signs will be visible only to those 
who watch for them with the eagerness and 
longing that arise from the passionate love 
of a bride, who awaits with joyful expec- 
tation the coming of her bridegroom. 

Among devout Christians who believe 
that Jesus Christ will return in triumph to 
claim His bride, there are two schools of 
teaching : The post-millennial, and the pre- 
millennial. Post-millennialists believe that 
the preaching of the gospel will so power- 
fully influence society that gradually the 



The Second Coming of Christ. 1 3 

world will be converted, evil will be over- 
come, and the millennium — a thousand 
years of universal peace and blessedness- 
will come upon the earth; and that at the 
end of this thousand years the Lord Jesus 
Christ will appear in great glory and pow- 
er to inaugurate the judgment, catch away 
His bride into heaven, and drive the wick- 
ed into outer darkness. 

Pre-millennialists believe that the gospel 
must be preached to all the world for a wit- 
ness, that by many it will be rejected, that 
wicked men will wax worse and worse; 
that Christ's coming will be as in the days 
of Noah, when the world is not expecting 
or desiring Him; and while vast multitudes 
are living in rebellion and sin, that just as 
Noah gathered the few righteous persons 
into the ark, so the Lord Jesus will gather 
His redeemed bride to the place prepared 
for them, and then, as the flood destroyed 
the wicked in the days of Noah, so great 
tribulation will come upon the earth; that 



1 4 The Second Coming of Christ. 

later on Jesus will appear with His people, 
set up His kingdom, bind and cast Satan 
into the pit and reign in great glory for a 
thousand years. 

We believe that the Scriptures abun- 
dantly prove the pre-millennial doctrine to 
be true, and we believe that conditions in 
the world today and the outlook for human 
history is quite in accord with the teachings 
of the Word of God as believed by pre- 
millennialists. 

Among devout and earnest Christians in 
all lands there is a very marked and deep 
conviction that we are rapidly approach- 
ing the end, not of the world, but of the 
age, of this dispensation. The flood mark- 
ed the end of a dispensation, and the begin- 
ning of a new and better one. The fall of 
Jerusalem and breaking up of the Israelit- 
ish nation marked the end of a dispensation 
and the introduction of a better one; the 
coming of die Lord Jesus Christ will mark 
the end of this dispensation, and the intro- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 1 5 

duction of a far better one in which the 
kingdoms of this world will become the 
kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ. 

That there have been fanatical teachings 
on this subject there is no doubt, but such 
teachings do not at all invalidate the teach- 
ings of Jesus Christ and His apostles on 
the subject; neither should mistakes of 
Christians in the past intimidate or hinder 
Christians of the present from "comforting 
one another with these words," of hope and 
consolation. 

Men who have fixed dates for the com- 
ing of the Lord have always gone contrary 
to the plain teachings of Jesus Christ. He 
has distinctly said: "No man knoweth the 
day nor the hour wherein the Son of man 
cometh." But He has given signs that in- 
dicate the nearness of the time when He 
will appear, and it is quite reasonable to 
suppose that those who love Him and long 
for His appearing should be watching for 
those signs. 



"For the time will come when they will 
not endure sound doctrine; but after their 
own lusts shall they heap to themselves 
teachers, having itching ears. And they 
shall turn away their ears from the truth, 
and shall! be turned unto fables." 2 Tim. 
4:3,4. 



Chapter II. 
THE APOSTASY. 

We believe the signs of the times unmis- 
takably indicate that the coming of the 
Lord Jesus is much nearer than most peo- 
ple suppose it to be. It is our purpose in 
this treatise, to examine some present con- 
ditions and see if there are not swelling 
buds on the fig tree of prophecy to thrill 
the devoted heart with the hope that the 
return of the Lord is near. First, we wish 
to call attention to the great apostasy pre- 
dicted in the New Testament scriptures. 
To the Thessalonians Paul says, "Let no 
man deceive you by any means; for that 
day shall not come, except there come a 
falling away first." II. Thes. 2:3. 

The above scripture is taken from a dis- 
cussion concerning the coming of our Lord. 
The Apostle Paul also writes the follow- 
17 



1 8 The Second Coming of Christ. 

ing to Timothy: "Now the Spirit speaketh 
expressly, that in the latter times some shall 
depart from the faith, giving heed to se- 
ducing spirits, and doctrines of devils." I. 
Tim. 4:1. 

In his second letter to Timothy Paul 
says, "For the time will come when they 
will not endure sound doctrine; but after 
their own lusts shall they heap to themselves 
teachers, having itching ears; And they 
shall turn away their ears from the truth, 
and shall be turned unto fables." II. Tim. 
4:3,4. The conditions described in these 
scriptures are to exist just before die com- 
ing of our Lord; and it seems to us there 
can be no reasonable doubt that these con- 
ditions do exist today in a marked and 
startling degree. 

We are well aware that backslidings, 
apostasies, and dark days have come to 
the church through the past centuries, but 
today we have conditions of unbelief, false 
doctrines and deceptive philosophies de- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 19 

stroying the souls of men which have 
scarcely been paralleled in the history of 
the church. Those oriental countries 
where the gospel was first preached have 
sadly become a vast moral waste. South- 
ern Europe, in which the great Apostle la- 
bored, and where the religion of Jesus 
Christ secured a footing and made rapid 
headway in the early history of this dis- 
pensation, has fallen into an apostasy sad 
to contemplate. France, Italy and Spain, 
though dotted over with churches, and bur- 
dened with priests, offer at the same time 
one of the most needy, and one of the 
most difficult mission fields in all the world. 
The decadence of genuine spirituality, the 
dead formalism, and degrading supersti- 
tions of these great countries are appalling. 
Germany is blighted with destructive crit- 
icism. German scholars in spiritual blind- 
ness have torn the inspired Scriptures to 
tatters, and the State Church has be- 



20 The Second Coming of Christ. 

come a system of dead forms and ceremo- 
nies denying the power of godliness 

In the British Isles the drift is toward 
Romanism, and everywhere there are evi- 
dences of a fearful state of spiritual deca- 
dence, while the destructive criticism in the 
church and the blatant infidelity of the 
streets march shoulder to shoulder to over- 
throw the influence of the Bible and ag- 
gressive evangelism, destroying the faith 
and hardening the hearts of the people. 

In these United States the whole trend 
in morals and religion is alarming in the 
extreme. Our great universities are be- 
coming powerful centers for the cultiva- 
tion of unbelief in, and ridicule of the sa- 
cred Scriptures. Many prominent pulpits 
deny the inspiration of much of the Bible, 
and openly disclaim any faith in a number 
of the great fundamental doctrines of di- 
vine truth. Thousands of our Protestant 
ministers are unsettled in their faith and in 
fact, are quite at sea with reference to the 



The Second Coming of Christ 21 

authenticity and authority of Holy Writ; 
while the rising tide of popular unbelief 
is breaking away the barriers of the old 
faith and flooding the land with a reckless 
and blasphemous infidelity. 

The skeptical teachings in the colleges, 
the taint of unbelief and ridicule in litera- 
ture, and the uncertain sound in the pulpit, 
are digging the foundations from beneath 
the faith of the people, and countless 
multitudes and millions of human beings in 
the streets of our populous cities utterly dis- 
regard God, the Bible, the Sabbath day, 
the Church, and all of the authority and 
restraints of the divine law. 

We cannot overlook the fact that in the 
midst of these untoward conditions, all 
manner of false teaching is springing up 
and finding ready reception among the 
drifting masses. Note the tremendous 
growth of Eddyism, the magnificent tem- 
ples being erected all over the land into 
which multitudes crowd to read Mrs. Ed- 



22 The Second Coming of Christ. 

dy's unscientific and unscriptural scrib- 
blings. New Theology, New Thought, 
all sorts of ancient heathen religions, and 
modern spiritualism attract the attention, 
beguile and destroy the souls of the peo- 
ple. 

The growth and audacity of Romanism, 
with its infallible pope, its superstitious 
juggleries over the bones of the saints, and 
its masses, with its huge financial graft at- 
tachment, of prayers for the dead, 
and powerful political influence, are 
enough to alarm every sober-thinking 
citizen of our nation. One of the 
most alarming features of the situa- 
tion is the fact that the great masses of our 
church membership, supposed to be some- 
what orthodox, have come to believe that 
sin is an essential part of human nature, 
that holiness is an impossibility, that the 
Word of God cannot be intelligently un- 
derstood, that His commandments cannot 
be obeyed, that the atonement is not suffi- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 23 

cient to reach and overcome the depravity 
and proneness of the human heart to evil. 
Under these false teachings and miscon- 
ceptions of divine truth, and the provisions 
made in the sufferings of Christ for the re- 
demption of men, all hungering and thirst- 
ing after righteousness and desire for holi- 
ness are being quenched out of the soul of 
believers, the people are drifting into luke- 
warmness, backsliding and falling under 
the domination of the world, the flesh, and 
the devil. 

Because of these conditions, it has come 
to pass that in thousands of great congre- 
gations of professed Christians, it would be 
almost an insult to the people for the 
preacher of the gospel to stand in the pul- 
pit, explain and enforce the plain teachings 
of the Word of God, which point out the 
sufficiency of the atonement, the renewing 
power of regeneration, the cleansing pow- 
er of sanctification, and the glorious possi- 
bilities and absolute necessity of a holy 
heart and a righteous life. 



24 The Second Coming of Christ. 

We firmly believe that the dusk of the 
great apostasy is upon us, and that it will 
deepen into a darkness of spiritual deca- 
dence and death fearful to contemplate. 
God's laws are violated, His Son is re- 
jected, and crucified afresh, the Holy Spir- 
it is ridiculed and grieved, while a great 
Niagara of lost souls is pouring into the 
abyss of eternal night. 

We are not unmindful of the devout 
ministers, faithful people, earnest evan- 
gelists and great missionary movements in 
the world today; but just now we are 
calling attention to the great apostasy, the 
unbelief and wickedness that are sweeping 
the earth like a cyclone of moral ruin. 

This very general apostasy and the 
widespread influence of skeptical teaching 
and worldliness is recognized and lamented 
everywhere, not only by thoughtful and de- 
vout people in the church, but among sober 
and thinking men in the world generally. 
In books, pamphlets, magazine articles, and 



The Second Coming of Christ. 25 

the daily press we find a general lamenta- 
tion among thoughtful and observant men 
in all walks and conditions of life over the 
dearth of real Christian devotion and the 
tremendous aggressiveness of the evil 
forces; there is a widespread and general 
fear in the mind and hearts of men with ref- 
erence to the immediate future of the race. 
It seems as if the foundations of society are 
shaking beneath us. There is unrest, dis- 
satisfaction, and fearful forebodings in ihe 
minds of the people that are undoubtedly 
the forerunners of one of the greatest catas- 
trophes and most remarkable and radical 
changes in all the history of the world. 

Many sincere people believe that the ca- 
lamities, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, 
and destructive floods are the voice of 
warning from a compassionate God who is 
striving to call the attention of the people 
to the frailty and uncertainty of the things 
of this life and to make immediate prepara- 
tion for the tremendous events which are 



26 The Second Coming of Christ 

marching rapidly toward the culmination of 
the centuries. 

Scientific physicians will tell you that sin 
has so polluted the the physical life, so shat- 
tered the nervous system, and sown broad- 
cast disease of every kind that millions of 
people are unfit to wed and produce chil- 
dren. Immorality is making such inroads 
upon society that state legislatures are pass- 
ing laws to prevent the marriage of those 
persons whose physical condition is such 
that their offspring must necessarily be fear- 
fully diseased; and the most learned and 
thoughtful men are telling us that some- 
thing radical must be done, and done soon, 
or the world will be crowded with hospi- 
tals and lunatic asylums; that the fearful 
and increasing number of suicides will 
multiply, and finally the human race will 
become extinct. 

Once before in the history of man he be- 
came so wicked and polluted that he was 
unfit to inhabit the earth and propagate the 



The Second Coming of Christ. 27 

species, and God swept the earth with the 
flood; "Whereby the world that then was, 
being overflowed with water, perished: 
But the heavens and the earth, which are 
now, by the same word are kept in store, 
reserved unto fire against the day of Judg- 
ment and perdition of ungodly men." 2 
Peter 3:6, 1. 



"Let your loins be girded about, and 
your lights burning; And ye yourselves 
like unto men that wait for their Lord, 
when He will return from the wedding; 
that when He cometh and knocketh, they 
may open unto Him immediately. Blessed 
are those servants, whom the Lord when 
He cometh shall find watching/' — Jesus, 
Luke 12:25-27. 



Chapter III. 
THE GOSPEL NOT A FAILURE. 

We have failed to find in the Scriptures 
a single passage indicating that the gospel 
dispensation will wind up in a triumphant 
conquest of the world for righteousness. 
We find the Scriptures everywhere teach- 
ing the reverse of this, and this is no evi- 
dence that the gospel scheme is a failure. 

There is no coercion in the gospel. God 
nowhere proposes to force men into right- 
eousness, submission to His law or accept- 
ance of His truth; He always and every- 
where recognizes their free agency. It 
was never intended that the gospel should 
save the men who reject it. It is no argu- 
ment against a medicine, that it does not 
heal men who refuse to take it, or food, 
that it does not nourish men who refuse to 
eat it; or the gospel that it does not save 
29 



30 The Second Coming of Christ. 

men who stubbornly and persistently refuse 
to receive it and trust in its saving power. 

Our post-millennium brethren insist that 
their premillennial brethren discount the 
power of Christ to save, and make the gos- 
pel dispensation a failure, if it does not 
finally result in the conversion of the entire 
population of the earth. Has not many 
a postmillennial preacher gone into town, 
village or community and preached the 
gospel long, faithfully and earnestly and 
seen only a very small part of the popula- 
tion converted, while the vast majority of 
the people not only disregard his warn- 
ing, exhortation and invitations to salvation 
in Christ but actually became harder of 
heart and more wicked because of thei/ at- 
titude of resistance against his message of 
mercy, adding to their sin of violation of 
divine law, another and perhaps greater 
sin, the rejection of divine mercy. 

In leaving such a community does the 
faithful preacher conclude that the gospel 



The Second Coming of Christ 3 1 

is a failure? By no means so. The gos- 
pel has graciously saved those who have 
accepted it; to them it has the power of 
eternal truth to deliver from guilt and sin, 
and to prepare them to meet their coming 
Lord in peace. Those who have rejected 
the gospel have failed and must perish. 
Nevertheless, the gospel has been offered 
to them and will appear as a witness 
against them, and in that great day they 
will be judged in the light of the mercy 
and truth which they spurned. 

The Lord Jesus does not say that when 
all the world has been converted and 
saved, then the end shall come, but He 
does say, "And this gospel of the kingdom 
shall be preached in all the world for a 
witness unto all nations; and then shall the 
end come." Matt. 24:14. 

It is well understood that the dispensa- 
tion before the flood ended in destruction. 
Does any intelligent man say that God and 
His truth were a failure in the antediluvian 



32 The Second Coming of Christ. 

age? By no means so. All thoughtful, 
pious men say that the people of that age 
were wicked and rebellious, that they re- 
jected warning and mercy, and having 
done so, there was nothing left for them 
tut destruction. 

The Hebrew dispensation closed out 
with the fall of Jerusalem and the carrying 
away of the Jews into captivity. Will 
any honest may say that God failed, that 
His revelation, prophets, and plans were 
insufficient to accomplish His gracious pur- 
poses? Certainly not. The people tram- 
pled on His truth, persecuted and murder- 
ed His prophets and His Son, utterly re- 
fused to fall into harmony with His plans, 
and brought upon themselves destruction. 

When the present dispensation comes to 
a close in the binding of Satan, the over- 
throw of his power in the world, the de- 
struction of those who have rejected Christ, 
and the coming of our Lord in glory to set 
up His kingdom on the earth, no man, in- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 33 

telligent or ignorant, devout or otherwise, 
will say that die gospel of Jesus Christ has 
been a failure. They will say it was, and 
is eternal truth, and a glorious success to 
those who received it, but that it had no 
power to save those who rejected it. "Who- 
soever shall fall upon this stone shall be 
broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it 
will grind him to powder." Luke 20 : 1 8. 

It must be borne in mind that the gospel 
dispensation is a period of probation; that 
man is a free agent ; that for the present the 
wheat and tares are growing together; that 
Satan is at large roaming the earth seeking 
whom he may devour, and that legions of 
evil spirits and wicked people under his do- 
minion are helping to tempt and destroy 
multitudes of human beings. This condi- 
tion of things is not to last ; it is in the mind 
of God a temporary, fixed period. Satan's 
career on this globe will come to an end ; he 
has great wrath because he knows that he 
hath but a short time. 



34 The Second Coming of Christ. 

When the wicked spirits said to Jesus: 
"Why hast thou come to torment us before 
our time?" they knew that they had an 
appointed time to remain in this world, and 
then to be driven out of it and be confined 
to their place in the pit, and they knew 
that their time had not yet come. Jesus 
Christ recognized this fact and did not send 
them into their final place of abode. 

It was the will and wisdom of God in 
the development of character and bringing 
men into a state of holiness which is to stand 
the tests of eternity, to place him in a world 
of temptation fraught with trials and temp- 
tations, to give him the gospel, the merits of 
a crucified Savior, the powerful influences, 
leadings, and inspirations of the Holy Spir- 
it, the church with the ministry, and the va- 
rious means of grace for his salvation, up- 
building, and perfecting ; and after the gos- 
pel has been preached in all the world for a 
witness, giving men an opportunity to be 
saved, He will bring this dispensation to a 



The Second Coming of Christ. 35 

close. Satan and his minions will be driven 
out of this world, those who rejected Jesus 
will be driven out with him, and Jesus will 
set up His kingdom and all those glorious 
prophecies concerning the triumph of the 
kingdom of God in the world, when, "the 
knowledge of the glory of the Lord shall 
cover the earth as the waters cover 
the sea," and, "the kingdoms of this 
world are become the kingdoms of our 
Lord and His Christ" shall be fulfilled. 

This was the thought in the mind of our 
Savior, when He put His disciples and His 
church to praying, "Thy kingdom come, 
thy will be done in earth as the angels do 
it in heaven." This prayer will be answer- 
ed when Christ appears with His resur- 
rected and translated saints. Satan, demons, 
sinners, and rejecters of Christ and His 
truth, will be driven away, and Jesus Christ 
will reign and rule in supreme and undispu- 
ted authority. 

This talk about "the gospel being a fail- 



36 The Second Coming of Christ. 

lire," if everybody is not converted during 
this dispensation, is a pitiful begging of the 
question. If that be true, it has already been 
a failure; vast millions of people have re- 
jected it and died in their sins and will con- 
tinue so to do. It was never intended that 
the gospel should force men into a state of 
obedience and devotion; it offers to give 
salvation, and if that offer is rejected, the 
rejecter must bear the consequences. 

Jesus says: "Behold, I stand at the door 
and knock," but He never breaks the door 
down. The time is coming, and coming 
soon, when those who have spurned the au- 
thority of God, violated His laws, rejected 
His Son, grieved His Spirit, and given 
themselves over to the dominion and con- 
trol of the devil will be crying for rocks and 
mountains to fall on them and hide them 
from the face of the Lord coming in the 
clouds of glory. Then we shall hear no 
more talk of the gospel being a failure. 

The preaching of destructive criticism, 



The Second Coming of Christ. 37 

uncertainty and doubt, notions and opin- 
ions of men, instead of God's message, 
the skeptical teaching in colleges and litera- 
ture, the unbelief, worldliness and wicked- 
ness which is the inevitable harvest of such 
sowing, the growth and rampant spirir of 
Romanism, Mormonism, Eddyism, Rus- 
sellism, with the disregard of law, and the 
common decencies of life, are rapidly pre- 
paring the way for perilous times. 



"This know also, that in the last days 
perilous times shall come. For men shall 
be lovers of their own selves, covetous, 
boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient 
to parents, unthankful, unholy, without nat- 
ural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, 
incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that 
are good, heady, highminded lovers of 
pleasure more than lovers of God; having 
a form of godliness, but denying the power 
thereof: from such turn away." 2 Tim- 
othy 3:1-5. 



Chapter IV. 
PERILOUS TIMES. 

The Scriptures foretell a fearful state 
of society at the close of the gospel dispen- 
sation. These conditions will be the log- 
ical consequences of the rejection of the 
truth and salvation offered in Christ. The 
widespread rejection of the Bible, the au- 
thority of God, the deity of Jesus, the per- 
sonality and leadership of the Holy Spirit, 
are now opening wide the flood-gates of 
sin for the inflow of all forms of evil. 

Paul, writing to Timothy, says: "This 
know also, that in the last days perilous 
times shall come. For men shall be lov- 
ers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, 
proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, 
unthankful, unholy, without natural affec- 
tion, trucebreakers, false accusers, inconti- 
nent, fierce, despisers of those that are 
39 



40 The Second Coming of Christ. 

good, high-minded, lovers of pleasures 
more than lovers of God, having a form of 
godliness, but denying the power thereof." 
II. Tim. 3:1-5. 

We are not able to understand how our 
postmillennial brethren can reconcile their 
views with these teachings of the Script- 
ures. Undoubtedly, this prophecy of St. 
Paul is now being fulfilled before our eyes. 
Whatever we have had in the past, what- 
ever the future may hold for us, there can 
be no question but that we are now living 
in perilous times. Restlessness and uneasi- 
ness in human society is widespread 
throughout the world. 

There is much talk of peace but war 
and bloodshed, with all their attendant evils 
prevail, and while millions of human be- 
ings suffer for necessary food and the peo- 
ple stagger beneath a load of taxation, 
the nations in hot haste spend multi- 
plied millions of money in preparation for 
the destruction of human life. 



The Second Coming of Christ. 41 

Note this saying of the Apostles: "Men 
shall be lovers of their own selves, covet- 
ous." How fully this scripture is fulfilled 
in the great, greedy trusts of the country. 
Are men today saying, "Give us this day 
our daily bread?" Nay, verily! They 
are not asking God to give them anything ; 
they are boldly taking everything in sight. 

One great trust corners all the wheat 
and breadstuffs; another corners the Fabrics 
for clothing; another corners building ma- 
terial; another corners the meat supply. 
The vast herds of cattle are fat and must 
be butchered because it is ready for the 
market, and would be expensive to keep on 
the hoof, but the great trusts, in order to 
keep up the exorbitant prices of meat, kill 
and freeze hundreds of thousands of fat 
carcasses in cold storage, until the price of 
beef is so high that a poor man cannot buy 
a juicy steak to put milk into the flabby 
breasts of his hard-worked and starving 
wife, that she may furnish nourishment for 



42 The Second Coming of Christ. 

the emaciated and diseased baby that per- 
ishes in her bony arms for lack of sufficient 
food. 

Another corporation controls dairy pro- 
ducts, another corners poultry products, 
another the dried fruit, another the fresh 
fruit, another controls the oil, an- 
other the output of coal; and so 
it comes to pass that God's earth, with its 
rich resources and supplies for the needs of 
mankind, is so controlled and manipulated 
by human selfishness that vast millions of 
people live in misery, and die prematurely 
because of the lack of proper nourishment, 
housing and clothing, and go up to bear 
witness before God of the mismanagement, 
starvation, and slaughter that are going on 
in this fallen and sinful world. 

The Apostle tells Timothy that men 
will be "boasters, proud, blasphemers, dis- 
obedient to parents, unthankful and un- 
holy." These fearful conditions have 
reached to so high a tide in the earth that 



The Second Coming of Christ. 43 

no man can move among its masses 
without being constantly reminded, if he 
will only stop to think, that the conditions 
herein specified, exist in an alarming degree 
among his fellowbeings. The people "sit 
down to eat and drink, and rise up to 
play." Holiness is a subject for ridicule 
among church members; multitudes of 
preachers in their pulpits oppose that holi- 
ness which comes to a human soul through 
the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ. 

"Unnatural affection!" Think of the 
war being waged today in our society 
against the coming of innocent babes into 
the home. The physicians tell us that the 
slaughter of the unborn is widespread, and 
newspapers reveal the fact that infanticide 
among our civilized people is quite com- 
mon. Meanwhile, the fondness of poodle 
dogs grows into a shocking passion. It is 
reported that babies can be bought in some 
of our great cities at two dollars a piece, 
while poodle dogs are eagerly sought in 



44 The Second Coming of Christ 

the market at prices ranging from a hun- 
dred dollars and upward. Unnatural af- 
fection indeed! 

If Jesus should come in the clouds of 
glory today, and those who are not ex- 
pecting Him should complain that He ap- 
peared without proper notification, He 
could easily point them to this famous quo- 
tation from Paul to Timothy and assert 
that every prediction contained in it, is ful- 
filled in present day conditions. 

What thoughtful man is not impressed 
with the adulterations and dishonesty in 
commerce, the trickery and selfishness in 
politics, the stupid ignorance and brutality 
of the whiskey traffic, the prostitution, 
lewdness and general spirit of lawlessness 
which prevails throughout the earth, con- 
stanly fostered with the growth of unbe- 
lief in God and His eternal truth. Time 
would fail us to tell of the outrage and 
crimes committed under the sun; the op- 
pression by the rich, the despair and vin- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 45 

dictiveness of the poor, and the rising tide 
of perilous times. 

The men who have the intellectual ca- 
pacity and financial ability to manipulate 
conditions so as .to bring plenty and happi- 
ness to the race, in stupid selfishness seek 
to secure incalculable wealth, while hu- 
manity suffers the untold evil conse- 
quences. While thousands of people 
shiver with cold, millions of cords of wood 
rot in the forest; while tens of thousands 
of lean, bony-fingered little children in our 
great cities never had a whole peach, pear 
or orange in their dirty little hands through 
all of their wretched lives, tons on tons of 
God's golden fruit rot upon the ground. 
While earth's bounties are heaped away in 
elevators and cold storage, lean-faced fa- 
thers and mothers look at each other with 
sad eyes over scantily supplied tables. 

Meanwhile, the spirit of unrest grows 
and the demon of vengeance crouches to 
leap upon its fat and unexpected victim. 



46 The Second Coming of Christ. 

Perilous times have come, but we have 
only seen the scouting parties, the mere ad- 
vance guard of the onmarching army of 
wickedness, rebellion and anarchy, the log- 
ical outcome of the rejection of Jesus and 
His gospel, and the choosing of Satan and 
rallying beneath his black banner for the 
awful day of destruction. 

The antediluvians sinned, rejected 
warnings, refused to repent and finally met 
their doom when the mad waves of the de- 
luge lashed in fury the highest mountain 
peaks. The Hebrew people killed the 
prophets, crucified Jesus Christ and met 
their doom when the Roman hosts pressed 
in upon Jerusalem from every side, until 
starved with famine, enshrouded with fire, 
and choked with blood, their sacred city 
fell into the hands of their heathen con- 
querors and, carried into captivity, they 
were sold into slavery throughout the pa- 
gan markets of the world. 

The gospel dispensation has been char- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 47 

acterized with backslidings, rejections, un- 
beliefs, selfishness and sin. In many coun- 
tries where the faith once flourished, now 
superstition hangs like a black pall. Our 
highest civilizations are filling the coffers 
of their governments with the blood money 
of the whiskey traffic, and we have in the 
incubator of social conditions the eggs 
which will hatch the vipers to sting society 
with the poison of unbelief and lawlessness 
that will sweep the earth with great tribu- 
lation. We have sown to the wind, and 
we must reap the whirlwind. 

The advance guard of "perilous times" 
is upon us and the heavy columns of fearful 
days of destruction and high tide of human 
sorrow are marching forward with unhalt- 
ing and rapid tread. 



" Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, 
that I will raise up unto David a righteous 
Branch, and a King shall reign and pros- 
per, and shall execute judgment and jus- 
tice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be 
saved, and Israel shall dwell safely; and 
this is His name whereby He shall be call- 
ed, The Lord our Righteousness." Jere- 
miah 23:5-8. 



Chapter V. 
RETURN OF THE JEWS. 

The prophetical scriptures clearly teach 
that the Jewish people will be gathered 
again into the Holy Land. This gather- 
ing will undoubtedly take place before the 
coming of Christ. The general belief of 
premillennial Bible students is that the ap- 
pearing of the Lord will occur very soon 
after the restoration of the Jews to Pales- 
tine. 

We will quote a few passages of 
Scripture from the prophets in proof 
of the teaching that the Jews will re- 
turn to the Holy Land: "For, lo, 
the day is come, saith the Lord, that 
I will bring again the captivity of my 
people Israel and Judah, saith the Lord: 
and I will cause them to return to the land 

49 



50 The Second Coming of Christ 

which I gave to their fathers, and they shall 
possess it.'* Jer. 30 :3. 

In the 1 0th and 1 1 th verses of this same 
chapter we read the following: "There- 
fore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, 
saith the Lord; neither be dismayed, O 
Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar 
and thy seed from the land of their cap- 
tivity : and Jacob shall return, and shall be 
in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make 
him afraid. For I am with thee, saith the 
Lord, to save thee: though I make a full 
end of all nations whither I have scattered 
thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee : 
I will correct thee in a measure, and will 
not leave thee altogether unpunished." 

This prophecy evidently does not refer 
to any of the gatherings of the Hebrew 
people to Palestine in the past, but refers 
to that far more general and final gather- 
ing of the Hebrew people to their own 
country shortly before the appearing of 
our Lord. 



The Second Coming of Christ. 5 1 

In Lamentations 4:22, we read, "The 
punishment of thine iniquity is accomplish- 
ed, O daughter of Zion : he will no more 
carry thee away into captivity." Perhaps 
no one of the ancient prophets has so much 
to say of this final restoration of the He- 
brews as the prophet Ezekiel. He speaks 
with great ecstasy of the restoration of the 
land, and rebuilding of the waste 
places. Note the following: "But ye, O 
jnountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth 
your branches, and yield your fruit to my 
people of Israel; for they are at hand to 
come. For, behold, I am for you and I 
will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled 
and sown: and I will multiply men upon 
you, all the house of Israel, even all of it : 
and the city shall be inhabited and the 
wastes shall be builded: and I will multi- 
ply upon man and beast; and they shall 
increase and bring fruit: and I will settle 
you after your old estates, and will do 
Jbetter unto you than at your beginning: 



52 The Second Coming of Christ. 

and ye shall know that I am the Lord," 
Ezk. 36:8-11. 

In the same chapter from which the 
above is taken, we read from the 23rd and 
24th verses, "And I will sanctify my great 
name which was profaned among the 
heathen, which ye have profaned in the 
midst of them : and the heathen shall know 
that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, 
when I shall be sanctified in you before 
their eyes, for I shall take you from among 
the heathen, and gather you out of all 
countries and will bring you into your own 
land." These scriptures are very clear. 
It is the purpose of God in the restoration 
pf the Hebrews, in exact fulfillment of 
these ancient prophecies to prove to the 
heathen, the destructive critics, the church, 
and whole world, that the Holy Scriptures 
are inspired; that He is a covenant-keeping 
God; that what He has promised He will 
bring to pass. 

Continuing in this same chapter from 



The Second Coming of Christ. 53 

verse 33 to 36, we read the reiteration and 
confirmation of the above promises : "Thus 
saith the Lord God : in the day that I shall 
have cleansed you from all your iniquities 
I shall also cause you to dwell in the cities, 
and the wastes shall be builded. And the 
desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay 
desolate in the sight of all that passed by. 
And they shall say, this land that was des- 
olate is become like the garden of Eden; 
and the waste and desolate and ruined cit- 
ies are become fenced and are inhabited. 
Then the heathen that are left round about 
you shall know that I the Lord build the 
ruined places, and plant that that was des- 
olate : I the Lord have spoken it, and I will 
do it- 
One of the very interesting features with 
regard to these splendid prophecies is the 
fact that they are now being actually ful- 
filled. The Jews are rapidly returning 
to the Holy Land. There are some 60,- 
000 of them now living in Jerusalem, and 



54 The Second Coming of Christ 

many prosperous colonies are springing up 
in Palestine. A few years ago, while 
traveling in that country, my eyes were 
gladdened as I beheld with delight, that 
history is dove-tailing into prophecy and 
Palestine is being restored. I was espe- 
cially impressed while walking around 
about Jerusalem with the prophecy con- 
tained in Jer. 31 :38, 39. "Behold, the 
day is come, saith the Lord, that the city 
shall be builded to the Lord from the tower 
of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner. 
And the measuring line shall yet go forth 
over against it upon the hill Gareb, and 
shall compass about to Goath." 

While in Jerusalem, I asked a friend 
who has resided there for a number of 
years, with reference to this prophecy, and 
he walked with me to the hill Gareb, say- 
ing to me as we went along, that the"meas- 
uring line had already gone forth/* When 
we arrived there we found the slope ef 
the hillside covered with a beautiful new 



The Second Coming of Christ. 55 

village and occupied by 1 ,300 Jews who 
had recently returned there from foreign 
countries, and had gone into their new 
homes before the carpenters had time to 
complete them, and some of the gables 
had been temporarily closed in with cor- 
rugated iron. We also saw a new vil- 
lage being hurried to completion in the 
outskirts of Joppa, with houses sufficient 
to accommodate a thousand Jews who were 
coming to them just as soon as they could 
be completed. 

I called the attention of my traveling 
companion to the fact that while many of 
our modern scholars are ridiculing the 
Holy Scriptures, that these prophecies con- 
cerning the return of the Jews are being 
most wonderfully fulfilled before our eyes; 
and we rejoiced together, as we realized 
that our faith in the eternal truth of God's 
weird rests upon an unshaken feundahsn. 
The Lord savs of this restoration and re- 



56 The Second Coming of Christ. 

building, "It shall not be plucked up, nor 
thrown down any more for ever." 

That this restoration of the Jews is to 
be very general, will be seen from the fol- 
lowing scriptures: "Therefore thus saith 
the Lord God ; now will I bring again the 
captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon 
the whole house of Israel, and will be jeal- 
ous for my holy name ; after that they have 
borne their shame, and all their trespasses 
whereby they have trespassed against me, 
when they have dwelt safely in their land, 
and none made them afraid. When I 
have brought them again from the people, 
and gathered them out of their enemies' 
lands, and am sanctified in them in the 
sight of many nations ; then shall they know 
that I am the Lord their God which caused 
them to be led into captivity among the 
heatihen: but I have gathered than unto 
their own land, and have left none of them 
any more there, Neither will I hide my 
face any more from them: for I have 



The Second Coming of Christ. 57 

poured out my Spirit upon the house of 
Israel saith the Lord God." Ezk. 39 :25~ 
29. 

We are aware that some people try to 
give these prophecies some sort of a spir- 
itual interpretation, trying to make it ap- 
pear that they refer to a period of great 
grace and blessing in the history of tl-~ 
Christian Church. It would hardly 
seem worth while to try to argue with 
or convince such people. The proph- 
ecies that the Israelites should be scattered 
into all the world, have been actu- 
ally and literally fulfilled. The prophe- 
cies of their restoration will be as literally 
fulfilled as those referring to their scatter- 
ing have been. 

We will close these quotations with re- 
ference to the restoration of Israel with a 
beautiful selection from Jeremiah 16:14- 
1 6. "Therefore, behold, the day is come, 
saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said, 
the Lord liveth, that brought up the child- 



58 The Second Coming fiof Christ. 

ren of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, 
the Lord liveth, that brought up the child- 
ren of Israel from the land of the north, 
and from all the land whither He had driv- 
en them : and I will bring them again into 
their land that I gave unto their fathers. 
Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith 
the Lord, and they shall fish them; and I 
will send for many hunters, and they shall 
hunt them from every mountain, and from 
every hill, and out of all the holes of the 
rocks." 



"Therefore, behold, the days come, saith 
the Lord, that it shall no more be said, The 
Lord liveth, that brought up the children of 
Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, The 
Lord liveth, that brought up the children of 
Israel from the land of the north, and from 
all the lands whither He had driven them ; 
and I will bring them again into their land 
that I gave unto their fathers. Behold, I 
will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, 
and they shall fish them; and after will I 
send for many hunters, and they shall hunt 
them from every mountain, and from every 
hill ,and out of the holes of the rocks." Jer. 
16:14-16. 



Chapter VI. 

THE RETURN OF THE JEWS. 

(Continued.) 

Just as the Old Testament Scriptures 
were shut up in the Hebrew language and 
the New Testament Scriptures were shut 
up in the Greek language, so Palestine has 
been shut up in the grip and under the 
tyrannical rule of a nonprogressive people, 
and in this way through the centuries, it has 
been preserved in its topography 
and customs, just as it was in the 
days of Christ and the apostles; a 
powerful external witness of the inspiration 
of the scriptures. The traveler who visits 
Palestine on landing in that country real- 
izes that he has stepped back into condi- 
tions and scenes, customs and habits as they 
existed two thousand years ago. It was 
the will of God that the country should 
61 



62 The Second Coming of Christ. 

thus be preserved as a powerful corrobora- 
ting witness of the sayings of Jesus and the 
writings of the apostles. 

It is said that during one of his cam- 
paigns, King William, the grandfather of 
the present Emperor of Germany, sitting 
about his camp fire, said to his chaplain, 
4 'Chaplain, what is the best external ev- 
idence of the inspiration of the Bible? 
Answer me not in argument or process 
of reasoning, but briefly — in a word." 
The chaplain answered, "Sire — The 
Jews." "Ha!" said King William, 
"That is splendid. You could not have 
given me a better answer. The Jews, as 
they exist today, are a remarkable fulfill- 
ment of prophecy, and a powerful witness 
to the inspiration of the Bible." 

Jerusalem is to be trodden down by the 
Gentiles until the time of the Gentiles be 
ended. There is every reason to believe 
that the waning power of the "unspeakable 
Turk" over Palestine will soon be broken. 



The Second Coming of Christ 63 

When the hand of destiny marks the hour 
on the dial plate of time, it must be so. We 
rest our faith in God and wait patiently. 
When Palestine comes from under the 
iron yoke of Turkey, then no doubt, "The 
time of the Gentiles" will have ceased. 
The Jews who are now settling up and im- 
proving the country are the advance guard 
of divine purpose preparing the land to re- 
ceive the multitudes which will then begin 
to flow into it. Again its fruitful hills will 
wave with luxuriant orchards of olives, figs, 
oranges and pomegranates. Again the 
mountain sides will be turned into great 
vineyards of most delicious grapes, and the 
valleys will be golden with ripening grain, 
and the goodly land will with milk and 
honey flow, and the Jews, who through all 
their wanderings and sufferings during 
two thousand years, have under God, pre- 
served their Hebrew blood as pure and 
untainted as that which flowed in the veins 
of Moses and David, will come flocking 



64 The Second Coming of Christ 

home from all the lands in which they have 
been scattered, like doves to their windows, 
and the inspired promises of God will have 
triumphed over the unbeliefs of men. 

That the Jews are rapidly returning 
there can be no doubt. Unbelievers, 
however, attribute these facts to various 
causes and put prophecy and all divine 
guidance entirely out of the matter. Of 
course unbelievers do not propose to be 
convinced. 

Mr. Nathan Straus, one of the most 
wealthy and influential Jews in the United 
States, has retired from business and pro- 
poses to devote the remainder of his life 
and a very large part of his fortune to the 
improvement of the city of Jerusalem. 
Mr. Straus has been a man of great pub- 
lic spirit in this country and has spent some 
millions of dollars in various public char- 
ities. He has been especially interested in 
the pasteurizing of milk for the prevention 
of tuberculosis. He has also done some 



The Second Coming of Christ 65 

charitable work in Jerusalem. He now 
proposes to establish a pure water supply 
in Jerusalem which will cost about $500,- 
000. 

Mr. Straus was recently in the Holy 
Land, and on return said to a newspaper 
man: "You know I am non-denomina- 
tional, although I believe that no preacher 
of the gospel of any denomination should 
undertake to convey a great spiritual mes- 
sage to any sect without first experiencing 
the extraordinar)' religious sensibility 
which a visit to Palestine will give him. 
It is a wonderful experience, a necessary 
part of his education, to immerse himself 
in the remarkable atmosphere of religious 
feeling which pervades the Holy Land." 

This would indicate that Mr. Straus is 
not only a man of great wealth and busi- 
ness capacity, but a man of genuine spirit- 
ual sensibilities. Of course, we all know 
that a man may be a most earnest, excel- 
lent, and fruitful preacher without ever 



66 The Second Coming of Christ. 

seeing Jerusalem, yet no man has had the 
privilege of visiting that country who 
would not be impressed with these sayings 
of this great Jew. It is a remarkable thing 
to "immerse" oneself in the religious at- 
mosphere that pervades the Holy Land, 
especially Jerusalem. 

Mr. Straus says: "The needs of Pal- 
estine are very great. I have done all 
that a man of my means can afford, but 
it is only a mite to what could be accom- 
plished if sufficient funds were available. 
Whoever comes forward and supplies the 
means will be instrumental in creating a 
resurrected Holy Land again flowing with 
milk and honey. I went to Jerusalem 
last year because I was drawn there by 
associations of the Holy Land; I found 
conditions that appalled me. Starvation 
and disease held the people in their grip. 
I did what one man could do to relieve 
the unfortunate, establishing a health de- 
partment for Palestine, and soup kitchens 



The Second Coming of Christ 67 

in Jerusalem at which 330 people are fed 
daily. 

"Jerusalem stands on a hill, and there 
is every reason why it should be made as 
healthful and delightful a place to live as 
the most modern city of the world. What 
is chiefly needed is modern water-works. 
There is plenty of water to be had if prop- 
er pumping stations were erected. At the 
present time water is the most precious pos- 
session of the household. It is kept in 
cisterns under lock and key; every drop of 
it is valuable, because there is no water 
system available. The defects of the 
sanitary arrangements of the city on this 
account are terrible. 

"In Jerusalem there is only one good 
hotel, and what capital is invested there is 
mostly foreign. There is some rumor that 
a trolley-line is to be built from Jerusalem 
to Jaffa, which is being financed, I believe, 
by Belgian capital. There is absolutely 
no American money invested anywhere in 



68 The Second Coming of Christ. 

Palestine, and yet there should be, because 
the country is fruitful. I have seen no 
better orange groves anywhere than in 
Palestine, and, besides, the world owes a 
tribute to the historic features of the Holy 
Land." 

While in Jerusalem a few years ago 
looking upon the great needs of the peo- 
ple, I could but long that some intelligent, 
aggressive, and wealthy American He- 
brew might be moved to become person- 
ally interested in the city and do the very 
work that Mr. Straus now proposes to do. 
The breaking of the power of Turkey 
makes these improvements a possibility. 
The time of the Gentiles is almost ended. 
It will not be long until Turkey's power 
in Palestine will be entirely destroyed, and 
then progress will go forward rapidly. 
Wealthy Jews will go back to Jerusalem 
and all the appliances of modern science 
will be called into requisition to make it 
a healthful and beautiful city. As for the 



The Second Coming of Christ 69 

means which God may use in the fulfill- 
ment of His promise of course no one is 
able to positively predict, but that God 
will keep His word there is no question, 
and our hearts rejoice as we see the fulfill- 
ment of prophecy — the improvement of 
Jerusalem and the restoration of the Jews. 



''And the seventh angel sounded; and 
there were great voices in heaven, saying, 
The kingdoms of this world are become the 
kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ; and 
He shall reign for ever and ever." 



Chapter VII. 
THE SPREAD OF THE GOSPEL. 

In the closing chapters of the gospel of 
Matthew, our Lord Jesus has much to say 
with reference to His second coming. In 
the 24th chapter and 1 4th verse He says, 
"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be 
preached in all the world for a witness unto 
all nations; and then shall the end come." 

The reader will notice that our Lord 
does not say this gospel shall be preached 
until all the world is brought to repentance 
and saving faith, but He says it is to be 
preached for a witness. Men shall finally 
be judged in the light of the truth which 
was preached to them and rejected by 
them. 

The outlook for the rapid spread of the 
gospel is most hopeful. Notwithstanding 
the unbelief and backsliding with which we 

7i 



72 The Second Coming of Christ. 

are surrounded, the faithful people of the 
Lord are stirred up on the subject of for- 
eign missions as never before in the history 
of the church, and the entire heathen world 
is open to receive the gospel. 

That motto, "The evangelization of the 
world in this generation," was born of a 
genuine Christian zeal and faith. The 
Laymen's Movement, The Students' Vol- 
unteer Movement and all of these great 
missionary movements is the movement of 
the Holy Spirit upon the true disciples of 
the Lord to make haste in carrying the gos- 
pel to the ends of the world. 

The past few years have seen the most 
marvelous turning to God among heathen 
peoples ever witnessed in Christian history. 
Perhaps the missionary enterprise and suc- 
cess now going forward in Korea is with- 
out a parallel. All India shot through 
with western civilization under the influ- 
ence of the British empire, lies open to the 
blessed influences of the gospel and is re- 



The Second Coming of Christ* 73 

sponding to Christian evangelism in so mar- 
velous a manner that many thousands of 
them are clamoring for Christian baptism, 
while missionaries cannot be hurried to the 
field rapidly enough to supply these new 
converts with spiritual teachers. 

The awakening of China and her rapid 
progress and outstretched hand for the 
sympathy and help from Christian nations 
is one of the marvels of the ages. Africa 
is begging for the bread of life, and mis- 
sionaries traveling through the dark con- 
tinent are received with gratitude and fol- 
lowed with entreaty to remain and teach 
and train the people in the things of the 
gospel of Jesus Christ. 

We doubt not that the next few de- 
cades will see the giving of more money, 
the sending of more missionaries, and more 
widespread and blessed results in all the 
great fields than has been experienced with- 
in the past hundred years; it is not unrea- 
sonable to hope that within this generation 



74 The Second Coming of Christ 

the gospel will have been carried to the 
utmost bounds of the earth, and that every 
human habitation in desert waste and jun- 
gle, in mud hut and up among the tree 
dwellers, will have heard that Jesus Christ 
by the grace of God hath tasted death for 
every man ; that His precious blood cleans- 
eth from all sin, and that He is coming 
back to set up His kingdom in the world 
to reign and rule in glory over His re- 
deemed people. 

It would seem there could be no greater 
stimulus to missionary zeal and enterprise 
than the glorious thought that when this 
gospel is preached to all the world, "Then 
shall the end come." The end of Satan's 
reign, the awful waste and rum of war, the 
whisky traffic, the white slave trade, star- 
vation, plague and pestilence and the waste 
and wreck and ruin of human life ; and the 
introduction of a golden age in which Sa- 
tan shall be bound and cast into the pit, 
and Jesus Christ shall reign over and rule 



The Second Coming of Christ. 75 

the earth and the prayer which He taught 
us from His own blessed lips, and has been 
offered by the multitudes of Christians 
through the ages, shall be answered and 
realized in our earth: "Thy kingdom come, 
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heav- 
en. 

Believers in the premillennial coming of 
Christ are accused of being "star gazers." 
It is said that they are more given to look- 
ing up for the coming of the Master than 
they are to zealous service for the Master. 
This accusation is evidently false. Our 
observation is that no class of people is 
more actively engaged in spreading the 
gospel and laboring for the salvation of the 
lost than those whose hearts are stirred and 
stimulated by the "blessed hope." 

Dwight L. Moody was not an idler in 
the camps of the Lord's hosts, supinely 
waiting for the coming of the Master, but 
during his life was one of the most active, 
earnest, and fruitful evangelists in all the 



76 The Second Coming of Christ 

world. Mr. Torrey, Mr. Chapman, 
Gypsy Smith, and Billy Sunday are among 
the most aggressive evangelists in the world 
today, and they all hold the premillennial 
view of the coming of our Lord. 

Time would fail us to tell of a great 
host of earnest souls connected with the 
holiness movement: pastors, evangelists, 
missionaries, teachers, and devout people 
scattered throughout the land, and connect- 
ing links in a golden chain of faith around 
the world, who love and labor with sweet 
expectation that we are very rapidly ap- 
proaching the close of the present dispensa- 
tion and the glorious inauguration of die 
kingdom of peace on earth and good will 
to men under the reign of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. 

Three of the greatest missionary enter- 
prises in all the world today in their preach- 
ing and teaching lay special emphasis upon 
the second coming of Jesus, and teach the 
premillennial view, namely; The Taylor 



The Second Coming of Christ. 77 

"China Inland Mission," the "Christian 
Alliance Mission," and "The Oriental 
Mission." 

The intelligent zeal and consecration of 
the hundreds of missionaries under the in- 
fluence of these three great organizations 
challenge the admiration and respect of 
Christian people everywhere. Tens of 
thousands of souls are being brought to 
Christ under their influence, and are being 
taught to watch and pray and keep their 
lamps trimmed and burning that they may 
meet their Lord in peace. 

In our recent evangelistic tour around 
the world we found no more devoted, 
zealous, and happy missionaries, those who 
have forsaken home and native land and 
gone out to carry the gospel to the multi- 
tudes in heathen darkness, than those peo- 
ple who are fully persuaded that the "com- 
ing of the Lord draweth nigh." 

No sweeter thought can stir the human 
heart than that which thrilled the hearts of 



78 The Second Coming of Christ. 

the disciples when they returned from 
Mt. Olivet from which Jesus Christ had 
ascended, and where they had been as- 
sured by the angels who stood by them, as 
He went up, that in like manner He would 
return again. They returned to Jerusa- 
lem with joy, remembering that their sepa- 
ration was temporary and that there would 
be a blessed reunion of companionship with 
their Lord, from whom they should be sep- 
arated no more. 

For a broken-hearted, sinful peni- 
tent, to trust in Jesus for mercy, and to ob- 
tain His pardoning grace; to learn about 
Him in searching the Scriptures, in medita- 
tion and prayer, in conflict and struggle, in 
all the various and trying experiences of 
life, to consecrate to Him entirely and ex- 
perience the cleansing power of His pre- 
cious blood, to serve Him with a glad 
heart and free, to commune with Him 
through the illumination and intercession of 
the blessed Spirit, to labor for Him with 



The Second Coming of Christ 79 

a holy love that rejoices to express itself in 
service, and to wait for His coming with 
the comfortable hope that it will not be long 
— this is Christian experience which 
brings victory over the world, the flesh, 
and the devil. It makes life worth living, 
it delivers one from the charm and fascina- 
tion of the world and sets the affections on 
things that are eternal. 

If the whole Protestant Church could 
get such a conception and come into such 
an experience, with what enthusiasm and 
joy she would bring her offering to the 
treasuries of the Lord, and give her sons 
and daughters to carry the gospel to the 
neglected people of the earth, and hov- 
soon there would be no desolate places in 
the remotest bounds of human habitation 
that had not heard the good news of sav- 
ing grace through the atonement of Jesus 
Christ. There can be no greater protec- 
tion for the bride against the allurements 
and fascinations of the world, and no mo- 



80 The Second Coming of Christ. 

tive more powerful to stir her up to secure 
her white robes betimes, and keep them 
unspotted, than that she should be looking 
with joyful expectation for the coming of 
her Bridegroom. 

The great backslidden and worldly 
multitudes of professed Christians in the 
church who are thinking nothing of the 
white robes of righteousness and who find 
their enjoyment in mingling with the unre- 
generated and sinful, have put far away 
the coming of the Saviour. They do not 
desire Him, they do not expect Him, they 
cannot understand those who do, and they 
belong to those who mock and scoff at the 
thought of His coming. Not so with 
those who are saved by His power, filled 
with His love, and read with glad delight 
the precious promise with which He closes 
His last written revelation to His follow- 
ers: "Surely, I come quickly." With the 
beloved disciple we exclaim, "Even so, 
come, Lord Jesus." 



The Second Coming of Christ. 81 

Years ago when I was in a state of inde- 
cision with reference to the doctrine of en- 
tire sanctification, and the possibility of an 
instantaneous cleansing from the carnal na- 
ture through faith in Christ, I had occasion 
to reflect upon the fact that all of the most 
wicked and godless elements of society 
were unfriendly to this great doctrine and 
experience. That in the very nature of 
things the frivolous people connected with 
the modern stage, the selfish people connec- 
ted with the whiskey traffic, lewd and god- 
less wretches of the underworld, the proud 
and arrogant classes who live in luxury and 
seek the gratification of the appetites of the 
flesh, would be unfriendly to holiness — a 
pure heart, and a life given to God in genu- 
ine consecration and righteousness. 

These considerations had a powerful in- 
fluence upon my mind. It was quite rea- 
sonable to suppose that those who love God 
supremely, who desire His glory, who ful- 
ly believe in the atonement made by Christ, 



82 The Second Coming of Christ. 

in the personality and presence of the Holy 
Ghost in the world, ought not and would 
not object to the full benefits of the suffer- 
ings and death of our blessed Lord; that 
if it were possible to be cleansed from all 
sin, and made pure through the atoning 
merits of Jesus, they would be glad to en- 
joy such privileges and enter upon such an 
experience. These reasonings helped me 
to determine that my thoughts, desires, 
prayers, faith, teachings, and experience by 
God's grace, should be out of harmony 
with die selfish, wicked, and base elements 
of society, and in harmony with the devout 
and spiritual people of God 

The same process of reasoning will hold 
good with reference to the doctrine of the 
coming of our Lord. Our post-millennial 
brethren may be sure that any arguments 
they may produce in their efforts to prove 
that Jesus will not come for thousands of 
years, that any sarcasm or ridicule they 
may fling at those who long for and expect 



The Second Coming of Christ. 83 

Him soon, will be pleasing to, and meet 
with the heartiest approbation of the most 
wicked and worldly elements in society. 
No teaching could bring greater conster- 
nation to the liquor traffic, the lewd stage, 
the white slave trader, the red-light district, 
the riotous rich, the indifferent and godless 
multitude, than to be convinced that we are 
rapidly approaching and very near the end 
of the present dispensation, that in the im- 
mediate future the Son of God whom they 
have ignored, rejected and blasphemed, 
will appear in glory with His mighty an- 
gels, taking vengeance upon His enemies. 

Let me say in all kindness and Christian 
love to our post-millennial brethren, it 
would be wise and well to consider these 
things seriously, and in the preaching of 
their notions and theories postponing the 
coming of our Lord to some very indefinite 
and distant period thousands of years in the 
dim future, to be very careful lest they 
grieve the heart of the expectant bride of 



84 The Second Coming of Christ. 

the Savior and comfort the hearts of the 
wicked and dissolute in their sins. The 
Master has said: that He will come "In an 
hour that ye think not;" "when eating and 
drinking, marrying and giving in mar- 
riage," they will be neither desiring nor ex- 
pecting Him; they will be mocking and 
scoffing at those who are "trimming their 
lamps" with holy joy; and suddenly, as the 
lightnings illumine the darkness, the gates 
of glory will swing open and Christ will 
come in triumph. 

I cannot conceive that the preaching of 
post-millennial theories could produce con- 
viction for sin, stir the hearts of men to re- 
pentance, warn and woo them away from 
worldliness, and lead them to make haste 
to robe themselves in the white garments 
of holiness, and see to it that their vessels 
are full of oil. 

On the other hand it is the experience of 
preachers and evangelists everywhere, that 
the earnest preaching of the scriptural doc- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 85 

trine of the coming of the Lord mightily 
awakens the hearts of men and turns them 
to repentance, and brings them to speedily 
seek salvation. This writer has had occa- 
sion to notice the gracious effect upon his 
own Christian experience, and the powerful 
effect upon the people when he has preach- 
ed on this great subject, giving the scrip- 
tures and pointing out the reasons why he 
believes that we are rapidly approaching 
the end of this age, and the inauguration of 
a glorious dispensation in which Jesus 
Christ shall reign and rule without a rival 
throughout all the earth. 



44 Abstain from all appearance of evil. 
And the very God of peace sanctify you 
wholly ; and I pray God your whole spirit 
and soul and body be preserved blameless 
unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" 
— Paul, IThes. 5:22,23. ' 



Chapter VIII. 

A THOUSAND YEARS FOR A 
DAY. 

In Luke's gospel the 9t3i chapter and 
27th verse, Jesus said to His disciples: 
"But I tell you of a truth, there be some 
standing here, which shall not taste 
of death, till they see the kingdom of 

God." 

This scripture has been very largely 
misunderstood, some getting the idea that 
it meant that some one of the disciples 
should live until the close of the gospel 
dispensation and the coming of Jesus in 
His glory, but the following scriptures 
make plain the meaning of Jesus. "And 
it came to pass about an eight days after 
these sayings, He took Peter and John and 
James, and went up into a mountain to 
pray. And as He prayed, the fashion of 
87 



88 The Second Coming of Christ 

His countenance was altered, and His rai- 
ment was white and glistering. And, be- 
hold, there talked with Him two men,which 
were Moses and Elias: Who appeared in 
glory, and spake of His decease which 
He should accomplish at Jerusalem. But 
Peter and they that were with him were 
heavy with sleep: and when they were 
awake, they saw His glory and the two men 
that stood with Him. And it came to pass, 
as they departed from Him, Peter said unto 
Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here : 
and let us make three tabernacles; one for 
Thee, and one for Moses, and one for 
Elias : not knowing what he said. While 
he thus spake, there came a cloud, and 
overshadowed them: and they feared as 
they entered into the cloud. And there 
came a voice out of the cloud, saying, 
This is my beloved Son : hear Him." Luke 
9:28-35. 

In Peter's second epistle on the coming 
of the Lord he refers to this transfiguration 



The Second Coming of Christ 89 

experience in first chapter, 1 6, 1 7 and 1 8 
verses, where he says: 'Tor we have not 
followed cunningly devised fables, when 
we made known unto you the power and 
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were 
eye-witnesses of His majesty. For He re- 
ceived from God the Father honour and 
glory, when there came such a voice to 
Him from the excellent glory, This is my 
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 
And this voice which came from heaven 
we heard, when we were with Him in the 
holy mount." 

These scriptures fully explain the say- 
ing of Jesus, that "there be some standing 
here, which shall not taste of death, till they 
see the kingdom of God." His transfig- 
uration and the appearance of two distin- 
guished servants of God with Him on the 
mount was the coming of the Lord in min- 
iature. Jesus was revealing beforehand to 
His followers His coming glory, and had 
with Him on the mount two witnesses of 



90 The Second Coming of Christ. 

His grace and power: Moses, who had 
died and been raised up, representing the 
resurrection power which will bring the 
Lord's saints in triumph from their graves 
when He appears, and Elias,who had never 
died, but had been translated, representing 
that great company of Christians who shall 
be living when Jesus Christ appears, and 
who will be changed, translated in the 
twinkling of an eye. 

In this same epistle Peter calls attention 
to the fact that in the last days scoffers will 
come, walking in their own lusts and say- 
ing: "Where is the promise of His com- 
ing?" He also mentions the fact that 
these scoffers have forgotten the judgments 
of God and how that a previous dispensa- 
tion has been closed out in the destruction 
of those who rejected divine mercy. 
"For," says he, "this they willingly are 
ignorant of, that by the word of God the 
heavens were of old, and the earth stand- 
ing out of water and in the water: Where- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 9 1 

by the world that then was being over- 
flowed with water, perished : But the heav- 
ens and the earth, which are i*ow, by the 
same words are kept in store, reserved unto 
fire against the day of judgment and per- 
dition of ungodly men." 2 Pet. 3:5-7. 

Peter's prophecy that the time would 
come when men would forget the great 
fact of the flood has certainly been ful- 
filled. The multitudes do not remember 
the flood, or call to mind the fact that God 
"will not always chide, neither will He 
keep his anger forever," but that He will 
punish those who persist in sinning against 
Him. Many men today, claiming to be 
religious teachers, deny that there ever was 
a flood. There are plenty of gospel min- 
isters, who in their conceit take pleasure 
in proving that such a flood as is described 
in the Holy Scriptures, is a scientific and 
physical impossibility. The judgments of 
God are forgotten and the teachings of 
His word are set at naught, a marvelous 



92 The Second Coming of Christ. 

fulfillment of the prophecies of the inspired 
writers. 

In second Peter, 3rd chapter, and 8th 
verse, we read: "But, beloved, be not 
ignorant of this one thing, that one day 
is with the Lord; as a thousand years, and 
a thousand years as one day." There is 
much more in the Scriptures than will ap- 
pear upon the surface. To get the mean- 
ing of the Spirit, one must search the Scrip- 
tures in humility and prayer. 

It is the delight of God to hide the pre- 
cious truth from those who do not desire 
it; "The secret of the Lord is with them 
that fear Him." The Scriptures abound 
in parables, illustrations, and figures. The 
Lord packs a great depth of meaning into 
remarkably few words, and delights to re- 
veal to the humble hearts who love Him 
the unfolding of future beforehand, that 
they may prepare themselves for things to 
come. 

The millennium — the glorious reign of 



The Second Coming of Christ. 93 

Christ is referred to many times in the 
Bible. The Sabbath day is a beautiful 
type of the coming age of peace and tran- 
quillity. It was no mere accident that 
divided the week up into seven days, but 
infinite wisdom indexed in this division the 
whole of the probationary period of man. 
Each day in the week representing a thou- 
sand years, and the Sabbath with its rest 
from toil, its quiet atmosphere, its holy de- 
votions representing the seventh thousand 
when the week of toil and war and safcanfc 
rule shall have passed away and Christ 
shall have come in His glory. 

We had approximately two thousand 
years before the flood; a like period before 
the fall of Jerusalem ; and now almost two 
thousand years in which to spread "the 
gospel of the kingdom." We are rapidly 
approaching the close of the sixth thousand 
years of our week of human history. We 
are late Saturday evening, and time is pass- 
ing swiftly, events are mustering rapidly, 



94 The Second Coming of Christ. 

the twilight of the great apostasy is falling 
upon us, and perilous times are gathering 
like the hurrying regiments of a mobilizing 
army. 

The wandering Jews have turned their 
faces back toward Palestine and are has- 
tening by tens of thousands to the Holy 
Land. The evangel of the gospel is 
speeding to the ends of the earth with the 
message of the love of God, the crucifixion 
of Jesus, salvation through His atonement, 
and His coming in glory to receive His 
bride. The dawn of the great Sabbath 
of a thousand years is not far distant. 

It is delightful to reflect upon the con- 
ditions which will then obtain. There 
will be no more war, the earth no longer 
drenched with human blood, the sword 
will be turned into the pruning hook; the 
sweet song bird will build its nest in the 
neglected cannon's mouth, and the dawn 
of peace will spread her white pinions over 
the universal brotherhood of man. There 



The Second Coming of Christ. 95 

will be no more whiskey traffic; this de- 
mon will be driven to Hades with its father 
and shut up in the pit and sobriety will 
reign throughout the earth. 

There will be no more plague or de- 
structive earthquake or wasting pestilence 
or bursting volcanoes annihilating its help- 
less multitudes, or tidal waves, sweeping 
doomed cities from the shores of time. 
The bitter cold will be moderated, the 
burning heat will be cooled, the earth will 
be restored and will roll in ethereal light, 
baptized and blessed with the infinite love 
of the Father. 

Then let us gird ourselves afresh for 
battle and press the great work of spread- 
ing the gospel, waiting with prayer and 
song until the week of toil is ended and 
the Sabbath of a thousand years of rest 
and peace shall break upon our planet, 
and the Christ who came to earth in 
humiliation to hang on the cross of shame, 
shall come back in glory to sit upon the 
throne of universal empire. 



96 The Second Coming of Christ. 

The servants of the Lord have lived in 
this world with their Master gone away to 
prepare a place for them, while Satan made 
fearful ravages among the sheep of His 
pasture. They long to dwell upon the earth 
with Satan bound and cast out, and Jesus 
Christ here reigning in power. We are 
well aware that there are objectors who 
suggest that Jesus Christ is too great and 
holy to live upon this earth. We would re- 
mind them that Jesus Christ is the "same 
yesterday, today, and forever." He was 
just as holy when He was in this world 
without where to lay His head, mocked, 
ridiculed, persecuted, and crucified as He 
is today. 

If Jesus Christ was not too holy to ride 
into Jerusalem upon an ass' colt, He is not 
too holy to ride into Jerusalem upon the 
Shekinah cloud of glory. If He was not too 
holy to hang upon the cross and die for the 
race, He is not too holy to sit upon a throne 
and reign over the race. If He was not too 



The Second Coming of Christ 97 

holy to be mocked and ridiculed by the 
multitudes when He hung on Calvary in 
humiliation and agony, He is not too holy 
to be worshiped by the multitudes while 
He rules in righteousness and truth. This 
earth is to be redeemed ; its believing, obe- 
dient people are to be redeemed, and the 
Lord Jesus is to reign and rule just as su- 
premely here as He reigns and rules in any 
other part of the universe. 



"For this we say unto you by the word 
of the Lord, that we which are 
alive and remain unto the coming of 
the Lord shall not prevent them 
which are asleep. For the Lord 
Himself shall descend from heaven with a 
shout, with the voice of the archangel, and 
with the trump of God: and the dead in 
Christ shall rise first: then we which are 
alive and remain shall be caught up to- 
gether with them in the clouds, to meet the 
Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be 
with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one 
another with these words." — Paul, I Thes. 
4:15-18. 



Chapter IX. 
MEMORIALS AND PROMISES. 

"The practice of the presence of God 
is the best preventive against sin." To 
stay the mind on God, to cultivate and 
carry in the heart and brain thoughts of 
His presence, almightiness, holiness, and 
compassion is to elevate the soul into a 
realm of righteousness and peace. "Thou 
wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind 
is stayed on Thee." Isa. 26:3. 

In the morning of human history God 
established certain memorials and made 
certain great promises that were intended 
to keep the thought of Himself in the 
minds of the people. The Sabbath Day, 
the tithe law, the rite of circumcision, the 
feast of the passover were all intended to 
be reminders of the divine presence and 
authority of God in the world, and man's 
99 



1 00 The Second Coming of Christ. 

dependence and obligation to a loving 
obedience, faith, and consecration. 

With the introduction of the new dis- 
pensation, came in the place of the feast of 
the Passover the sacrament of the Lord's 
Supper, and that form of prayer called, 
"The Lord's Prayer," and the promise of 
the Lord's return. These memorial insti- 
tutions of our religion have had a powerful 
influence upon the Church of God. Ever 
since the organization of the Church in the 
old dispensation they have been common 
centers around which religious life has cir- 
cled; they have been constant reminders 
and benedictions to the servants of God. 

There is nothing more gracious and 
powerful in its influence upon people than 
promises freighted with expectation of 
great and triumphant events ahead. It 
was the wisdom of God in the establishing 
of the Hebrew Church to promise His 
people a coming Messiah. As prophet 
after prophet came upon the stage of ac- 



The Second Coming of Christ 1 1 

tion, looking down the dim vista of time, 
he beheld a coming King. The people 
listened in wonder and awe while the rapt 
seers told in words of burning eloquence 
of the unparalleled power and glory of 
His reign. "Abraham saw His day and 
was glad." 

Moses said: "The Lord thy God will 
raise up unto thee a Prophet from the 
midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me ; 
unto Him ye shall hearken." Deut. 18:15. 

Daniel said : "And in the days of these 
kings shall the God of heaven set up a 
kingdom, which shall never be destroyed : 
and the kingdom shall not be left to other 
people but it shall break in pieces and con- 
sume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand 
forever." Dan. 2:44. 

Seven hundred years before the Judean 
shepherds were startled in their midnight 
watches by the song of the angels, an- 
nouncing the birth of the world's Redeem- 
er, the prophet Micah had pointed out the 



1 02 The Second Coming of Christ 

country and named the village where Je- 
sus Christ was to be born. "But thou, 
Bethlehem of Ephratah, though thou be 
little among the thousands of Judah, yet 
out of thee shall He come forth unto me 
that is to be ruler in Israel." Micah 5:2. 

These prophecies, with many others 
equally definite, kept devout people 
throughout Hebrew history on the tiptoe 
of desire and expectation for their coming 
Messiah. There was nothing! that had 
so powerful an influence upon the Hebrew 
people as this promise; in it was centered 
the meaning of ceremony and sacrifice. It 
was the greatest event that loomed in their 
future, bound them together, with hope 
and prayer and longing. 

When the new dispensation was inaug- 
urated the Church was again to be stim- 
ulated, infused, and blessed with the prom- 
ise of the coming Christ. Jesus made 
these promises to the disciples. The an- 
gels brought these promises when the Lord 



The Second Coming of Christ. 1 03 

ascended, the apostles wrote them in their 
epistles, and they have been the hope of 
the church throughout the long weary cen- 
turies; they are being read afresh now by 
multitudes of believers as never before in 
Christian history, and we believe that the 
signs of the times all point to the sudden 
appearance of our Lord, that from this 
time the events of history will move for- 
ward upon the double-quick until prophecy 
is fulfilled, Satan is bound, Jesus descends, 
the sainted dead are raised, and there will 
be inaugurated a reign of peace and right- 
eousness in which the glorious prophecy 
concerning the Kingdom of heaven will be 
fulfilled in every part. 



"And the Lord make you to increase 
and abound in love one toward another, 
and toward all men, even as we do toward 
you: to the end He may stablish your 
hearts unblameable in holiness before God, 
even our Father, at the coming of our Lord 
Jesus Christ with all His saints." — Paul, I 
Thes. 3:12, 13. 



Chapter X. 

THE SECOND JOHN THE BAP- 
TIST. 

When Jesus came into the world the 
first time, John the Baptist came as His fore- 
runner, preparing the way with his earnest, 
rugged ministry, and stirring up the hearts 
and expectations of the people with great 
eagerness for the coming of the Lord. 
When Jesus comes the second time, no 
doubt a John the Baptist will come before 
Him, preparing the people to receive Him. 
We believe that John the Baptist is here 
now, and that John the Baptist is the great 
modern Holiness Movement which, in 
some form, is found in all the Christian 
world, and in every great mission field. 

The Holy Spirit is stirring a multitude 
of pastors, evangelists, and teachers to 
mightily call upon the people to seek ho- 
liness, to be cleansed from all sin, to be 
105 



1 06 The Second Coming of Christ. 

filled with the Spirit, to put on the white 
robes of sanctification — the wedding gar- 
ment — and be ready and watching for the 
appearing of the blessed Christ. The 
Spirit is especially impressing the servants 
of the Lord to appeal with great earnest- 
ness to God's children to seek a full and 
complete deliverance from all sin, and to 
keep their garments unspotted from the 
world. 

This movement is not by any means 
confined to the followers of John Wesley, 
but it has touched all religious denomina- 
tions. "The Christian Alliance," "The 
Keswick Movement," and other religious 
movements are laying great stress upon 
full redemption from sin and the coming 
of the Lord. 

The writings of the apostles connected 
very closely these two great truths — purity 
of heart, white robes, wedding garments 
and the coming Bridegroom. To us this 
very widespread cry of the Church of God 



The Second Coming of Christ. 1 07 

among all denominations and in all coun- 
tries, coupling these two Bible teachings 
together — heart purity and the coming of 
Jesus — white robes for the bride and the 
coming of the Bridegroom, is quite signifi- 
cant. 

We would suggest to the reader that 
whatever the facts may be in the case, 
there is no place for ridicule for the in- 
junction of Christ and the inspired writers 
was that we should watch, keep our lamps 
trimmed and burning, and be always 
ready and looking with joyful hopefulness 
for the appearing of the Lord Jesus. 

Such an attitude of soul is one of the 
best possible safeguards against immersion 
in worldliness, or undue love of material 
things which leads to forgetfulness of God 
and indifference to the things of salvation. 
There can be no greater stimulus to holi- 
ness and to unselifish and zealous service, 
than to be always comforting the heart 
with the thought that "the coming of ihe 
Lord draweth nigh." 



"The wolf also shall dwell with the 
lamb, and die leopard shall lie down with 
the kid; and the calf and the young lion 
and the fatling together; and a little child 
shall lead them. And die cow and the bear 
shall feed ; their young ones shall lie down 
together: and the lion shall eat straw like 
the ox, and the sucking child shall play on 
the hole of the asp, and the weaned child 
shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. 
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my 
holy mountain: for the earth shall be full 
of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters 
cover the sea." — Isa. 1 1 :6-9, 



Chapter XL 
THE MILLENNIUM. 

The word Millennium means a thou- 
sand years. When used with reference to 
the second coming of Christ it refers to the 
thousand years of His personal reign upon 
the earth. 

There is a widespread and unscriptural 
teaching among men that at the second 
coming of Christ He will immediately set 
up the final judgment. A careful investi- 
gation of the subject in the light of God's 
Word reveals the fact that the coming of 
Christ, the resurrection of the holy dead, 
and the translation of believing saints, on 
earth at the time of His appearing, and the 
general Judgment Day are different and 
distinct events and are separated from each 
other by more than a thousand years. 

When Jesus comes to set up His millen- 
109 



1 1 The Second Coming of Christ. 

nial reign, Satan will be bound, cast into 
the pit, and remain there during the millen- 
nial period. 

During this period Christ shall reign in 
great glory and peace over the resurrected 
and translated saints. The unholy dead 
will not be resurrected at the second com- 
ing of the Lord. The scripture teaching is 
very definite and clear on this subject. 
"And I saw thrones, and they sat upon 
them, and judgment was given unto them : 
and I saw the souls of them that were be- 
headed for die witness of Jesus, and for the 
word of God, and which had not worship- 
ped the beast, neither his image, neither had 
received his mark upon their foreheads, or 
in their hands; and they lived and reigned 
with Christ a thousand years. But the rest 
of the dead lived not again until the thou- 
sand years were finished. This is the first 
resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that 
hath part in the first resurrection: on such 
the second death hath no power, but they 



The Second Coming of Christ. 1 1 1 

shall be priests of God and of Christ, and 
shall reign with Him a thousand years." 
Revelation 20:4-6. 

There are many references to the first 
resurrection and the gracious reign of 
Christ found in the Scriptures. In Phil. 3 : 
1 1, in revised version, Paul said: "If by 
any means I might attain unto the resurrec- 
tion from the dead." In 1 Corinthians 
15:22 we read, "For as in Adam all die, 
even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 
But every man in his own order ; Christ the 
first fruit; afterward they that are Christ's 
at His coming." 

This scripture does not mean to teach 
that when Christ appears all the dead will 
be resurrected, but that they that are 
Christ's will be resurrected. In Luke 14:14 
we read: "And thou shalt be blessed: for 
they cannot recompense thee: for thou 
shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of 
the just" 

There is to be a short period of time be- 



1 1 2 The Second Coming of Christ. 

tween the close of the thousand years' reign 
of Christ and the general judgment. This 
fact is very definitely stated in Rev. 20:7- 
10. "And when the thousand years 
are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of 
his prison, and shall go out to deceive the 
nations which are in the four quarters of the 
earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them to- 
gether to battle : the number of whom is as 
the sand of the sea. And they went up on 
the breadth of the earth, and compassed the 
camp of the saints about, and the beloved 
city : and fire came down from God out of 
heaven, and devoured them. And the dev- 
il that deceived them was cast into the lake 
of fire and brimstone, where the beast and 
the false prophet are, and shall be torment- 
ed day and night forever and ever." 

There are three great future events spo- 
ken of very definitely and clearly in this re- 
markable 20th chapter of the book of Rev- 
elation. First, the coming of Christ, bind- 
ing and casting out of Satan, and the thou- 



The Second Coming of Christ. 1 1 3 

sand years of Christ's reign. Second, the 
loosing of Satan from his prison, the apos- 
tasy and deceiving of the nations, closing 
out with the great battle and the casting of 
Satan into the pit to remain there in torment 
forever and ever. And third, the final 
judgment, graphically described in the fol- 
lowing verses : "And I saw a great white 
throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose 
face the earth and heaven fled away ; and 
there was found no place for them. And I 
saw the dead, small and great, stand before 
God; and the books were opened: and an- 
other book was opened, which is the book 
of life: and die dead were judged out of 
those things which were written in the 
books, according to their works. And the 
sea gave up the dead which were in it ; and 
death and hell delivered up the dead which 
were in them ; and they were judged every 
man according to their works. And death 
and hell were cast into the lake of fire. 
This is the second death. And whosoever 



1 1 4 The Second Coming of Christ. 

was not found written in the book of life 
was cast into the lake of fire/' Rev. 20 : 1 1 - 
15. 

We are well aware that there are those 
who are quite inclined to eliminate this re- 
markable chapter in the book of Revelation 
from this discussion. They are disposed to 
question its authority. They talk about its 
standing alone without corroboration in the 
general teaching of the Bible. We have 
no sympathy with this criticism, but ac- 
cept it absolutely at its face value and be- 
lieve it without a moment's hesitation. 

We call the reader's attention to the fact 
that this book is safe-guarded against crit- 
ics and objectors in a most remarkable 
way. In its introduction in the first chap- 
ter and third verse, we have the inspired 
writer saying: "Blessed is he that readeth, 
and they that hear the words of this pro- 
phecy, and keep those things which are 
written therein; for the time is at hand." 
In the closing chapter we find the inspired 



The Second Coming of Christ 1 1 5 

writer in the 18th and 19th verses saying: 
"For I testify unto every man that heareth 
the words of the prophecy of this book, If 
any man shall add unto these things, God 
shall add unto him the plagues that are 
written in this book : And if amy man shall 
take away from the words of the book of 
this prophecy, God shall take away his part 
out of the book of life, and out of the holy 
city, and from the things of the holy city, 
and from the things which are written in 
this book." 

We wish to call the reader's attention to 
the fact that this warning has reference, not 
to the Bible as a whole, (although it would 
be a great sin to tamper with any part of 
the Word of God) but this warning is with 
specific reference to "the prophecy of this 
book-" The Holy Spirit is safeguarding 
the book of Revelation and impressing up- 
on us the danger of doing just what many 
people are doing- — setting aside, rejecting, 
and explaining away the great truths con- 
tained in this book. 



1 1 6 The Second Coming of Christ. 

It would seem that thoughtful and pious 
men would guard most carefully their crit- 
icism of this book of prophecy after such 
serious warnings. 

During the Millennium there will be on 
the earth a time of great grace and bless- 
ing. The song of the angels will be real- 
ized. There will be "Glory to God in the 
highest, and on earth peace, good will to- 
ward men." Luke 2:14. Think of an age 
without war, the devastation, bloodshed, 
sorrow, and ruin it brings. During this 
golden age there will be no war, "And 
they" (the nations) "shall beat their 
to pruninghooks ; nation shall not lift up 
swords into plowshares, and their spears in- 
its sword against nation, neither shall they 
learn war any more." Micah 4 :3 ; Isa. 2 :4. 

The whiskey traffic in all of its branches, 
with all its evil effects will go out of exist- 
ence. Sobriety, industry, plenty and gen- 
erosity will be characteristic of the entire 
race. Our earth will be changed, the curs- 



The Second Coming of Crhist. 1 1 7 

es that came with sin will disappear and 
"instead of the thorn shall come up the fir 
tree, and instead of the briar shall come up 
the myrtle tree .... The wilderness and 
the solitary place shall be glad for them; 
and the desert shall blossom as the rose." 
Isa. 55:13. Isa. 35:1. 

Much oi the slavish toil now necessary 
to subdue the earth and bring forth harvests 
will be done away and there will be peace 
and plenty on every hand. Enmity and 
strife will cease in the animal kingdom, and 
man and beast will enter into a great treaty 
of peace and live together in happy har- 
mony. 

Isaiah describes the conditions that shall 
exist in the following beautiful words: 
"The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, 
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid ; 
and the calf and the young lion and the fat- 
ling together; and a little child shall lead 
them. And the cow and the bear shall 
feed; their young ones shall lie down to- 



1 1 8 The Second Coming of Christ. 

gether : and the lion shall eat straw like the 
ox. And the sucking child shall play on 
the hole of the asp, and the weaned child 
shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. 
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my 
holy mountain for the earth shall be full of 
the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters 
cover the sea." Isa. 1 1 :6-9. 

Those who cherish "the blessed hope" 
must not forget "the rapture" — the catch- 
ing away of the saints to meet the Lord in 
the air when He shall take His bride to 
Himself. This "Rapture" shall occur be- 
fore the Revelation of the Lord coming in 
glory to set up His kingdom. 

It is during the Rapture, while the holy 
bride of Christ is caught away, that the 
great tribulation shall come upon the earth. 
It is at this time that "two shall be grinding 
at the mill, one shall be taken and the oth- 
er left; two shall be engaged in the field, 
one shall be taken and the other left; two 
shall be sleeping in the same bed, one shall 



The Second Comnig of Christ. 1 19 

be taken and the other left." It is with ref- 
erence to the Rapture that the apostle Paul 
says: "Then we which are alive and re- 
main shall be caught up together with them 
in die clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; 
so shall we ever be with the Lord." 

The period between the Rapture — the 
catching away of the saints, and the revela- 
tion of the Lord coming with His saints and 
angels in great glory, is supposed to be a 
comparatively short period. It is during 
this period that a wicked and sinful world 
that has rejected Jesus Christ will have its 
way with itself and plunge into a depth of 
anarchy and sin unparalleled in history, and 
the earth shall be swept with the besom of 
great tribulation. 

The Lord pledges His bride that she 
shall be delivered from this time of tribula- 
tion in these words: "Because tliou hast 
kept the words of my patience, I also will 
keep thee from the hour of temptation, 
which shall come upon all the world, to try 



1 20 The Second Coming of Christ. 

them that dwell upon the earth." Rev. 
3:10. "Watch ye therefore, and pray 
always, that ye may be accounted worthy 
to escape all these things that shall come to 
pass, and to stand before the Son of man." 
Luke 21:36. 

How long the period will be between 
the Rapture — the catching away of the 
saints, and the coming of the Lord in His 
glory, no one can tell, hence the great im- 
portance of the bride being always ready 
for the coming of the Bridegroom. 

The last words of our blessed Savior 
contained in the closing book of the New 
Testament Scriptures give tremendous em- 
phasis to all He said on the subject of His 
return to the earth: "Surely I come quick- 
ly." Let us join our prayers with the be- 
loved John and say: "Even so, come, Lord 
Jesus" Amen. 



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